ONLINE NEWS
Swedish regulator
received a warning and penalty fee from gambling regulator Spelinspektionen for offering betting on events in which the participants are under 18 years of age.
A
Cherry’s ComeOn Sweden subsidiary was hit with a SEK6m, and Hajper, another
nother four Swedish sportsbook operators have
ComeOn brand, SEK4.5m.
Legolas.bet, meanwhile, was hit with a SEK100,000 penalty. The size of the penalty issued to each was based on amounting to roughly 0.1% of revenue.
Between the four brands, bets were offered on a number of matches in which the majority of players were aged 18 or under. This included five U17 international football matches between January and May 2019, including two European U17 Championship matches, as well as one Swedish domestic U19 match in April.
Legolas.bet also offered bets on an U17
volleyball match that took place in May.
The betting companies have since taken measures to prevent gambling on matches involving underage players in future, such as not offering odds on U19 and U21 events, even though such matches may include a majority of overage players.
Apple to impose 17+ age limit
T
echnology giant Apple has confirmed that all social casino applications available via its App Store will now carry an age rating of 17-plus in all countries and regions. In an update posted on its developer microsite, Apple said that the changes were implemented on August 20 on a worldwide basis. It described these products as “simulated gaming apps”, describing them as games that a gambling experience
without real-money wagers, such as free-to-play slots and poker products. In practice, this will mean that developers will have to enter a Rating Classification Number from the Game Rating and Administration Committee, which will review each the app before granting the rating. In addition, Apple said that apps in the 17-plus ‘casino’ subcategory, as well as entertainment and games apps with simulated gambling would be available in South Korea for users who are at least 19 years old following discussions with the country’s government. Apple has acted on the request of a number of national administrations to remove access to gambling apps in recent years, including China in August 2018, when approximately 4,000 apps tagged with the keyword “gambling” were cut from the App Store in the country.
In June, Apple announced that it would only allow gambling apps native to iOS to be hosted in its App Store, giving operators until September 3 to ensure their products comply.
In an updated series of guidelines for App Store reviews, the tech giant stated that HTML5 games distributed within apps “may not provide access to real money gaming, lotteries, or charitable donations, and may not support digital commerce”.
Tobias Fagerlund appointed new CEO and President of Global Gaming
Global Gaming’s Board of Directors has appointed Tobias Fagerlund as the new President and CEO of Global Gaming. Tobias has been the company’s Acting CEO since April 29, 2019. Peter Eidensjö, Chairman of Global
Gaming, said: “It is with pleasure and complete confidence that we confirm Tobias Fagerlund as President and CEO of Global Gaming. His long experience of both the industry and change management, coupled with his deep understanding of our current situation and the fact he possesses the personal qualities required by the situation, clearly make him the right person to shoulder the great responsibility and challenge entailed by being the CEO of Global Gaming in the future.”
Only weeks ago, the Swedish Gambling Authority unexpectedly revoked the licences held by one of the company’s Maltese subsidiaries for the provision of online gambling services in the Swedish market. The decision was appealed and is currently in the appeal process. Of his new role and the company’s situation, Tobias Fagerlund commented: “It is with confidence and humility that I have agreed to take on this role. I would have naturally preferred to be appointed under different circumstances, but I have no reservations in accepting it. I have a great deal of faith in Global Gaming and stand by what I have said in recent weeks: the regulator’s decision to revoke our licences is incorrect and disproportionate. We are confident that we are compliant with the requirements of the Swedish legislation, and I have faith in the judicial process and look forward to its outcome. “The current situation is damaging to us, our customers, our employees and approximately 6,000 shareholders for every day that goes by. We will do everything in our power to restore as much confidence as possible in us, in order to be able to offer our brands to our customers in Sweden again soon.”
Tobias will remain a member of the company’s Board of Directors.
GIO SEPTEMBER 2019 91
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26
